The Mirror Twins
by Maya Beebop
Summary: Kagome is kidnapped and Inuyasha and Shippou have to come to the rescue!  Can they make it through the Twins' maze before Kagome is eaten?


"Forget it. There's no way in hell I'm coming with you."

"PLEEEAAASSSEEE!!!!????" You have to!"

"No." Maboku was firm.

Jabaku, dejected, looked away. "Well, fine, if you don't want to look for more jewel shards, it's no skin off my back. I'll just be the one with all the power. And I know the name of a certain shard carrier who'll be easy to beat."

She grinned to herself. "And it'll just be a crying shame when you're sitting around, watching me have all the fun."

"Wait!" Maboku reconsidered, and scratched his head.

"Fine, I'll come. But we split evenly this time, OK? No doling out stupid reasons and excuses why you should get more."

***

Inuyasha sat across from Kagome as she drank her tea.

"Dammit! Why do _you_ get to carry the shards? _ I_ should be the one. After all, Kagome, I was the one saving your life!"

Kagome kept sipping her tea in Kaiede's house. "Because I'm not the one who's going to run off with them. Remember Inuyasha, at first, you wanted the whole thing. I'm certainly not going to give you pieces that will help you get well on your way to becoming too powerful for that necklace to restrain you."

"The girl is right, boy. She is much smarter than you take her for." Kaiede had just walked in the room with a new pot of tea and some dressings for Kagome's latest cuts and scratches.

The afternoon passed without incident. But towards dusk, the sky turned a deep shade of red. The villagers, unsure, ran to Kaiede for advice and protection.

"Take up residence in thine houses. I shall consult the spirits and see what is to be done."

"Forget the spirits, lady. THAT'S what's causing all the trouble." Inuyasha, who had just come out, pointed up to the sky.

Two figures, flying, were visible just under a cover of clouds. One, male, carried a huge scepter-looking device, wrout in _red gold!_ The other, a female, was sporting a formidable pike. Both looked as if mirrors to one another. They moved and flew in tandem. And down they flew, until they stood right at Inuyasha's and Kagome's feet. 

Inuyasha growled to Kagome. "I know them. They're the Mirror Twins. They dress alike, act alike, and speak alike. One jumps, the other one does the same thing. It's disgusting."

Kagome looked doubtful. "I don't think they're here to show off…"

The girl stepped forward. "Seeing as _you_ know _us_, we'll drop the other shoe. I am Jabaku, one half of the Mirror Twins!"

The man came up. "I am Maboku. The other half. And you are Inuyasha. We didn't expect to see you, but then again how could a mere human find so many jewel shards by herself? Hmm?" He grinned.

"Hey, I can get plenty on my own, thank you very much!" Kagome told them.

"Whatever." Both spoke, and then rushed down at her. They circled around and around, causing a small whirlwind and then retreating back up to the air.

"Ha! Here's the little devils!" Jabaku grinned and held up the jar of shards.

"What the? How'd you get those?" Inuyasha's mouth hung open in disbelief.

"No matter, I'll just take them BACK!" He jumped and tried to grab them. Jabaku darted away, laughing, while Maboku flew at Kagome, who was staring at Inuyasha. In an instant, the maneuver paid off.

Inuyasha had finally got hold of the vial…or what seemed to be the vial. What he actually held was a small mirror.

"Oh, you silly! You should have known, after all that study on us, that THAT was what we'd be pulling. I saw the jar hanging out of your little human's blouse. I merely reflected that and it seemed as if I was holding it." Jabaku smiled.

"Which, while you were chasing _her_, gave me time to swoop down and grab the _real_ one!" Maboku held up the glass container with the jewel shards nestled inside it.

"Why you!…give those back or I'll be forced to do to you what I did to all the others who tried to steal those from me!"

"US!" corrected Kagome.

"Please! What could a mere human and half-breed do to _us_, the invincible Mirror Twins!?" Maboku smirked.

"I'll have you two know that not many have survived Inuyasha's attacks after commenting on that biological fact."

"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID GIRL!!!" Inuyasha spat at Kagome.

"It doesn't matter anymore. We're gone, literally! You can't find us; this is just a reflection! Ha!" And it was true. Inuyasha leapt up and touched the silvery surface of the mirror. It _was_ just a reflection. But where was the image coming from? They had to be nearby to have the illusion so big…

Kagome did some mental geometry. "Inuyasha! They have to be over there!" She pointed in a direction.

Inuyasha jumped over there, and the two came out of hiding.

"No fooling you! But rest assured, we'll be keeping these shards. And, as another fact, we have nothing in the storage room for dinner!" Jabaku turned to her companion. "Maboku, darling, don't you think human would be divine tonight? After all our success?"

"I think it would be superb. But let's not go running off looking for a good specimen. There's one right here, isn't there?" Maboku pointed to Kagome.

"Oh no you don't! She's staying right here! Don't you dare-…" But it was too late. Maboku had already swept down and grabbed Kagome around the waist. Jabaku followed in his wake as a strange thing happened. 

Maboku threw his scepter into the air, but instead of falling, it hovered in the air! Soon, a large silvery mirror surface had materialized. Maboku and Jabaku flew towards and through it, the silver surface rippling as they passed through. Finally, as Inuyasha looked on, the thing became smaller and smaller until it was just a small hand mirror. The piece of glass fell to earth.

Inuyasha picked it up and glared at it. All he saw was himself.

Just then, he heard a scuttle behind him. With lightning speed, Inuyasha whipped around and grabbed whatever it was.

"LET ME DOWN, INUYASHA! OR I'LL TELL KAGOME!!!!!" Shippou squealed.

"Too bad, fox-boy. You just missed her. She's been carted off by the Mirror Twins. No help from you! Where were _you_, anyway?!"

Shippou pouted and folded his arms. "I was busy. So what are you doing? Just go and save her!" 

"I _would_, except they're in _here_." Inuyasha held up the mirror.

"Stupid! All you have to do is ask me to open it!" Shippou retorted.

Inuyasha sighed. "Either you open it, or I'll pound your filthy head into the dirt."

"Hey! I'm telling Kagome when you save her!"

"JUST DO IT!"

"Put me down first!"

Shippou put two feet on the ground and pulled out a small piece of paper with some symbols painted on it. Then, chanting some spells, he slapped the paper on the mirror. The mirror enlarged, then became huge!

Inuyasha stepped up and touched it. Or at least _tried_ to touch it. But his hand went straight through! He pulled back.

"What are you doing? Go already! I'll meet you there if you're gonna take to so long!" Shippou jumped in.

"Wait! Damn it! He's always racing off!" Inuyasha sighed and leapt in.

Inside, it was a swirling mass of color and shapes, much like in between the two wells. When he finally touched ground, Inuyasha looked around. The first thing he saw was the _palace_. But not just any old stone castle, no. It had to fit the Mirror Twins, didn't it? It was made of several hundred chunks of the silvery material. 

"Great, a mirror castle. How are we supposed to get through _that_?" Inuyasha said to Shippou, who had been right next to him the whole time.

"Simple. Fox magic!" Shippou grinned.

"Well, get to it! We don't have all day! Kagome's gonna get _eaten_ if we don't hurry!"

Shippou raised yet another piece of scroll paper and proceeded to make towards the castle. The palace then seemed to glow, then the walls, once silvery and reflective, became dulled and brown.

"Good job, kid. It'll be easier to navigate now." Inuyasha went towards it. "But we better be on our guard."

"For what? It was impossible to get through. Why would they bother with guards?"

Inuyasha stared. "You got a point…"

They began through. Once the walls were dulled-over, it was fairly easy to find the topmost chamber. Kagome's screams helped, though.

Inuyasha and Shippou came in the room to find Kagome dangling over a cauldron of god-knows-what, and the Twins nowhere to be found.

"Hold on, Kagome, I'll have you outta there in no time."

From behind them, the Mirror Twins appeared. Inuyasha didn't see, he was too busy trying to save Kagome.

"Inuyasha, look o-…!" Kagome tried to warn him, but a small piece of reflective paper came whipping through the air and firmly planted itself upon her mouth.

Maboku wagged his finger at her. "Naughty, naughty girl! Giving us away so fast before we've had our fun! Papa spank!" He then unleashed a flurry of small mirror shards at them.

Inuyasha whipped around and blocked a few. Some passed him and buried themselves in the wall behind Kagome, sending cracks through the mirror wall.

The Twins screamed in agony.

_What was that all about?_ Inuyasha thought.

He leapt up, and tried to slash at them with his claws.

"Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!"

But he missed.

They were too fast. Or were they?

"Silly! You can't find us! Although your little fox spell worked on the outer chambers, this room is immune to such dulling magic. You just tried to attack a reflection!" Jabaku stated, giggling.

"How funny!" Maboku added, chuckling.

"Ha! I'll find you…just keep talking!" Inuyasha jumped around, trying to find the source of the laughter. He made too high a jump and smashed into a mirrored wall, shattering it.

"AAAHHHHGGGG!!!" The Twins again cried out in pain.

"That's it! That's how you beat them! The mirrors are their only defense! Catch them off guard, and you'll win, Inuyasha!" Shippou declared as he was working to unlock Kagome.

"You stupid brat! How dare you give the game away!?" Jabaku screamed at him and, from out of no-where, she planted her pike into Shippou's shoulder.

"AAH!!!" Shippou cried out, then fell.

From behind Kagome's mouth seal, you could almost hear: _Shippou!_

"Oh, that's IT!" Inuyasha frantically began smashing mirrors. The Twins collapsed, wherever they were, from the pain and agonizing torture, which they could do nothing to prevent.

"D-d-damn you…" Maboku managed, and then fell to the ground, unconscious, with his sister, as he bled, close to death.

"You're both dead when I find you!" Inuyasha began searching the mirrors for alcoves or small hiding places where the reflections could be seen. He found none. 

While he was doing this, another strange thing happened. Jabaku had somehow regained consciousness, and crept below the level of reflection. She sneaked up to just behind Inuyasha, then LEAPT!!! 

But Inuyasha, suspecting, turned around, drew Tetsusaiga, and sliced the girl in half, length-wise. 

Except she didn't fall apart. Instead, she drifted up into the air, where she was joined by her dying brother. They seemed to join together, then fell to earth as a small mirror, framed by silver and red gold.

Inuyasha raced over to Kagome and released her. They then held Shippou up. He'd be fine, Kagome declared, after giving him the once-over. He was still unconscious though. Inuyasha walked over to the mirror on the floor and crushed it under his foot. He then noticed something…

"Wait a second, where are the jewel shards?!" Inuyasha looked around in vain.

They found nothing, and it was only back in Kaiade's hut that Kagome mentioned them.

"I suppose we'll have to start again from ground zero?" 

Inuyasha nodded in disgust. "If only I had grabbed them from him when I had the chance…"

Kagome sighed. "I just wish we had them. Then, we'd be so much closer to keeping the world safe…"

Shippou pushed himself up from the bed nearby. "Here Kagome. I grabbed them with my Fox Magic before she stabbed me." He held up the vial. "I _would_ have kept them from Inuyasha, but knowing you needed them just-…"

Inuyasha gawked as Kagome took them and hugged Shippou. "Oh, you darling little thing! Ooh, ooh…" She kept hugging him.

"Eek! I'm still in pain here! Not that I don't appreciate all the attention. Maybe I could take an IOU for when I'm better." Shippou struggled to choke out through all the hugs.

"Alright." Kagome smiled.

"Stupid fox." Inuyasha pouted.


End file.
